Programming call for Artists and Scholars

Due: Feb 28 // Artists Notified: April 15

The Takoja Institute firmly believes in building sustainable communities and inspiring individuals to be the seeds for future generations. With respect to this, the theme for this year’s annual Takoja Retreat is The Anthropocene: Resonating with Mother Earth. The Anthropocene (adj.) is the current geological age, viewed as the period during which human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment. With respect to this critical point in our history wherein humans are impacting natural systems on a global scale, we are interested in hands-on workshops and scholarly talks that address the following considerations:

How can we create a more sustainable future as a society and on a daily, individual scale? 

How do we reconstitute the ‘end of the world’ rhetoric associated with climate change towards more proactive solutions and livable futures? 

How can we make lifestyle changes and shift behaviors to return to and maintain balance with local and global ecosystems?

How do we de-center the human experience to become more inclusive of plant and animal life? 

How can we become more thoughtful and proactive in our participation involving ecologically harmful systems like capitalism, productivity, and convenience? 

About Takoja 

Takoja Institute is an artist residency and retreat center nestled on a 40+ acre sanctuary in the Sangre de Christo Mountains in northern Taos County, New Mexico. 

Takoja, A Place of Tradition- to hear and answer the call of Mother Earth.

At Takoja all religions and spiritual beliefs are welcome; in this, we see Native American rituals and practice as a medium and a language for what we call “Earth Conscious Spirituality”; where deep connections with the life, resonance, and natural systems of our planet, illuminate and teach us more about who we are.

A Place of Community- to inspire and empower growth in others.

Takoja is rooted in welcoming varying ideas, cultures and experiences so we can further understand each other and the importance of building community and strengthening family.

A Place of Sanctuary- to explore process, dialogue, and self.

Through intimate connections with nature and solitude, introspection occurs naturally at Takoja, igniting new perspectives within our spirit and aligning us with our purpose.

A Place of Healing- to experience the power and vibration of spirit.

The landscape and spectacle of Takoja act as gateways to natural medicines, which play an active role in the cleansing and healing of the soul - Nature and creativity work side by side evolving new understandings of health and wellness.

A Place of Ecology- to become aware of our place in the natural ecosystem.

Takoja is a model for environmental and social sustainability, working together as a community in supporting advocates for change - uniting people and ideas with the natural movement and energy of our planet.

About  the Takoja Retreat 

As workshop leaders, our artists create a large part of the creative experience for retreat guests. Artists are given a $150 travel stipend paid at the end of the retreat and a full waiver for the four day workshop weekend, which includes three meals a day and sleeping accommodations in the two large adobe domes ($540 value). 

Takoja is a rural environment, and does not have any studio facilities that specialize in material or processes. We are looking for artists who are creative and resourceful, who can work with the available resources that Takoja is able to provide. Keep in mind that our landscape is one of Takoja’s prized available creative resources, and we are always interested in artists who respond and work in collaboration with the landscape. Workshops should be able to accommodate 20 participants, max; not all guests may attend individual workshops. Artists are responsible for  providing their own materials and tools for workshops, however the Takoja Institute is able to cover some basic material needs, depending. Selected artists will be expected to communicate with Takoja surrounding these needs. Artists will be selected based on project feasibility, quality of proposal, and strength of past work examples. All disciplines and workshop types will be considered. Past workshops include: Plein air drawing, natural dying, contemplative forest bathing, sound healing, meditation, sustainable building techniques, ecological tarot workshops, thai massage and body-work, among others. Please feel free to browse Takoja.org to view past workshops.

How To Apply

Send the Following to info@takoja.org by Sunday, March 15 to be considered for a 2020 Artist Workshop Leader: 

• 5-10 images of past work

• Statement of interest that includes: workshop description, material needs for workshop, and workshop relevance to this years theme ‘Anthropocene; Resonating with Mother Earth’

• Artist CV or biography that includes contact information (email, address, phone number) 

Timeline of Artist Notification 

Proposals due: March 15 // Artists Notified: March 23 // Payment Disbursed: July 6

Takoja Retreat: Thursday, July 2 - Sunday, July 5

*Artists may arrive a day early and depart a day later, however any additional time spent at the ranch will result in a daily fee*

Due to the Takoja Institute’s eagerness to include voices within the indigenous community, Artists and Scholars with Native American decent will be given special consideration in the application process.

About the Artist Selection Committee

MIRANDA KYLE is the Program Manager of Arts and Culture for Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. (ABI) and curates the annual Art on the Atlanta BeltLine Public Art Exhibition. After an academic fellowship with ABI, and assisting with installations in the subsequent years, Kyle was appointed to her current position in 2017. Since then, she has restructured ABI’s Public Art Program, managed an NEA Our Town grant to create and implement an Arts and Culture Strategic Implementation Plan, and overseen the commissioning of hundreds of art activations along the corridor.  In her role as the Program Manager for Arts and Culture she supports the department of Design and Construction to incorporate art into park and trail design, engage developers to consider public art in their construction, and advise on secondary design elements like benches and future transit stops. 

Additionally, Kyle works on interdepartmental collaborations with Community Engagement and Planning by managing relationships with outside arts organizations and institutions such as the National Black Arts Festival, the Woodruff Center for the Arts, Living Walls, Southern Fried Queer Pride, and Artlanta Gallery. She ensures the local creative community is integrated into the public art program with activations like Family Paint Day, and the Special Projects platform that asks the communities on the BeltLine to put forth their ideas for exhibitions.Kyle holds an MFA in Sculpture from the Savannah College of Art and Design, and an MA in Painting and Drawing from the Edinburgh College of Arts. She was awarded the 2013 Lee Kimche McGrath Fellowship for Arts & Sciences for her research in utilizing 3D printing technologies within traditional foundry practices, and in 2014 she was awarded the StarSeed Fellowship to research the intersection of Public Art, Performance and Space in Riga and Pedvale, Latvia. She has curated exhibitions locally and internationally over the last ten years, ranging in disciplines from performance to public art.

WILLIAM DOWNS is a contemporary American artist residing in Atlanta, Georgia. His practice is varied and includes drawing, painting and printmaking, installation and three- dimensional studies. For Downs, “the line” is paradoxically fundamental and surreal, based on its infinite capabilities. His work expresses truth in common forms turned ambiguous, while his use of repetition distorts expectations of truth. Downs’ forms form, reform and deform. Downs received a B.F.A in Painting and Printmaking from the Atlanta College of Art and Design and a multidisciplinary M.F.A from the Mount Royal School of Art at the Maryland Institute College of Art. His awards include Artadia and The Working Artist Project at MOCA GA. His work has been included in nationally touring shows with Art AIDS America, curated by Rock Hushka and Jonathan Katz and in Black Pulp! curated by Mark Thomas Gibson and William Villalongo. His shows include Contemporary Art Museum St. Lous, St. Louis MO, Grizzly Grizzly, Philadelphia, PA, Tempus Projects, Tampa, FL; Zuckerman Museum of Art, Kennesaw, GA.